On this date last year, the Diamondbacks inked Mark Reynolds to a three-year contract worth $14.5MM, buying out his first three years of arbitration-eligibility plus a club option for his fourth (Reynolds qualified as a Super Two). The 27-year-old hit .260/.349/.543 with 44 homers in 2009 but slumped down to .198/.320/.433 with 28 homers last season. He also struck out 200+ times for the third straight year. New GM Kevin Towers traded Reynolds to the Orioles for a pair of relievers in December, just nine months into his new deal.
These links are the best the blogosphere had to offer over the last seven days, so enjoy…
- Bless You Boys interviewed Tigers' radio announcer Dan Dickerson (part one, part two).
- Beyond The Box Score ranks the 30 best now-defunct MLB logos.
- MotionData created an interactive chart showing MLB team payrolls from 1991 through 2010.
- Baseball Time In Arlington muses about Chuck Greenberg's departure from the Rangers.
- Sports Perspective also checks in on Greenberg's departure.
- Bay City Ball comes up with some comparisons for Pablo Sandoval.
- Paapfly, meanwhile, isn't certain that a lighter Sandoval equals a better Sandoval.
- Mike Scioscia's Tragic Illness wants to know how many problems Tony Gwynn Jr. can solve.
- U.S.S. Mariner says that Michael Pineda isn't ready for the big leagues.
- Royals Review wonders if Mike Aviles will ever earn $1MM in a season.
- Camden Crazies looks at the Orioles' lineup with platoon splits.
- The Shea Faithful asks if the Mets should be worried about Jason Bay.
- Blue Jays Rant speculates about whether or not the Blue Jays will exercise Aaron Hill's options after 2011.
- Twins Territory Talk muses about a Kevin Slowey for Joba Chamberlain trade.
- MiLB News provides an update on some top prospects fighting for jobs this spring.
- Wahoo Blues came up with a better way to measure a player's power.
- Dock of the Rays applies Sean Rodriguez's minor league platoon splits to his 2011 projections.
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